A spatiotemporal analysis of energy use pathways in the construction industry: A study of China

Abstract

China has experienced rapid urbanization across the country which has required significant energy use and has also posed a series of possible environmental risks. Given the role that the construction industry plays in China's economy and in achieving sustainability, it is paramount to trace and measure the evolutionary pathways of energy induced by China's supply chains. By using a multiregional input–output model, structural path analysis, and exploratory spatial data analysis, this study presents a spatiotemporal analysis of how upstream energy interactions change in the context of rapid urbanization and the Chinese economy. The results show there has been less embodied energy consumption of building materials over time due to significant improvements in energy intensity reduction. The upstream energy distribution exhibited significant spatial heterogeneity within clustered urban agglomerations. Regions with poor resource endowment but highly vibrant economies appear to have wider connections with the national economy, whilst the critical energy flows in resource-exporting regions were only concentrated in energy-intensive sectors. The findings of this study provide improved understanding of energy evolutionary pathways and their complexities from both spatial and temporal perspectives. Such understanding will assist policymakers, especially the local government of each province, to implement effective energy reduction strategies and fairly address the allocation of energy reduction responsibilities.